Movie Chapter: Two Heroes, Prelude
This entire term was a roller coaster ride for all involved, though it was especially true for Katsuki Bakugou. Back in Aldera Middle School, he was the biggest fish of a fairly tiny pond, the one destined to become the Greatest Hero of Aldera. However, since his acceptance into UA, his entire perspective got flipped upside down. He had worked with Son Goku, the monkey he had loathed since laying eyes on his monkey tail, and lost out to Izuku Midoriya, or Deku, due to his inner Bakugou declaring him the weakest of the weaklings because of his Quirkless upbringing. Using his partner as the bar to pass, he had trained himself over the four weeks between the USJ Invasion and the Sports Festival, getting as powerful and practicing his tactical prowess as he can push it by himself. He still lost due to his opponent's berserker power. And that's not getting into what kind of shenanigans had happened when he eavesdropped on Endeavor's shitty home life, further compounded by the time he almost made the situation in Hosu worse by attacking the giant ape. With Mirko, he had learned that she was bullied due to her bunny Quirk making her look much smaller than her peers, before ultimately becoming the No. 7 Hero by making her opponents fear her power, while still saving enough civilians to be adored for her bravery, weirdo company excluded. Finally, he had to train with the Deku he so loathed, since he was separated from one of the few friends he knows, all because that Monkey and Ponytail had to organize their own sparring matches. If Middle School Katsuki had seen this, he would have told his High School self to "go jump off a roof alongside that Deku, because it's nothing more than worthless dirt." However, it would have likely been countered with him calling his middle school self "a shitty Endeavor-wannabe who'll get what's coming to him."
Though this Sunday was something that, while he knew was coming, was something he wouldn't have expected. A knock on the door, and the hums of his mother soon turned into a howl of delight.
"Cousin Mikai!" Mitsuki yelled in joy, as she goes to give her a hug. "Give your ol' cousin Mitsi a hug!"
"Cousin Mitsi!" Mikai giggled, trying to wriggle out of her older cousin's surprisingly strong grip. "Please, you're embarrassing me in front of my husband!"
"It's a pleasure to see you back here, Son-san," Masaru Bakugou greets the husband.
"Much of the same, Bakugou-san. It's truly been too long since we last met up," Gohan reciprocated.
Soon, a casually dressed Katsuki comes downstairs, looking a bit more forlorn than usual, though he still has his unique edge.
"Katsuki! You've grown to be a strong, young man, haven't you?" Mikai goes to hug her nephew, though he doesn't reciprocate.
"Hmph... It's good to see you, Aunt Mikai," He replies, a little cold.
"I'm so sorry I hadn't visited you in such a long while. With Uncle Gohan and me having to raise Goku-"
"Don't mention it. I know."
"Actually, speaking of him, where's your little rugrat?"
"Here I am!" Goku popped in.
"It's such a pleasure to finally get to see my little nephew Goku!" Mitsuki gives her nephew a noogie as he tries to get himself out of her grasp, with a grin. "Have you been keeping your parents busy for the last fifteen years?"
"Heh... like you wouldn't believe it!"
"Good, it looks like they done very well raising you!" She laughs.
"So, what brings you and your family here, Monkey?"
"Katsuki, that's a rude thing to say to my boy!" Mikai was appalled, while Mitsuki was fuming at her boy's callous name. Gohan, in the meanwhile, simply had a look of disapproval.
"It's fine, Mom," Goku tried to calm her down. "He has nicknames for all of our classmates back at school!"
"It still doesn't make it right for him to call you that, or for him to call anybody by any nickname..."
"Everyone, let's just calm down. We're all here to congratulate our boys for a year well-done, even if there's some things we can do better," Masaru spoke, as he looks at his son in a disapproving manner.
"Masaru's right. This should be a time for us to get together after we spent so many years being apart," Gohan added on. "I'm still disappointed in your nickname for my boy, Katsuki."
The firey young Bakugou withdrew as he would rather not have both pairs of parents play "Bad Cop, Good Cop". Besides, he can't exactly stand having his aunt and uncle looking at him like that. Unlike Mitsuki's liberal usage of fiery emotions, the Sons know how to drill their disappointment in by their stares alone.
"Right! Right... Well, I've gotten the pork and beef fully cooked, got some rice going, alongside a cornucopia of vegetables! Enough to sate all of our stomachs!"
"You sure you've gotten enough to fill his stomach?" Mikai can't help but grin as she spoke, her head tilt towards her son.
"I'm sure I did...!" Was what the older cousin said, though she had some slight unease over how Mikai said it.
However, once the family sat down and everyone else got their food, the young Saiyan kid started to eat everything. No matter what it is, whether it's a handful of carrots, or a large bowl of rice with some pork and sweet and sour sauce, or even a whole beef roast, he snarfed it down like it was nothing. Aside from the carrots, which were more carefully chewed down.
"Sorry, Cousin Mitsi..." Mikai said, with the most "I'm sorry I didn't warn you about this sooner" look on her face.
"D-don't worry about it, Mikai..." was all that the absolutely bewildered Mitsuki could mutter up, while Katsuki was laughing it up, seeing just how shocked his parents are. Of course, he's familiar with how much his Saiyan rival eats, though his parents absolutely weren't ready to see the Goku Garbage Disposal™ in action. Soon, the entire table, aside from the plates of food held by the other guests at the feast and a plate that still had plenty of carrots remaining, was emptied.
"Man, that was some good food, Auntie Mitsuki!" Goku complimented the meal. Doesn't beat his mother's, but still definitely a delicious experience.
"Y-you're... a hungry b-boy... weren't you...?" She was shocked, as aside from their plates of food and carrots, there's nothing but bones.
"Yep! Speaking of which, what's for dessert?" Goku grinned. However, this caused both Mitsuki and Masaru to falls onto the ground, legs high up in the sky, twitching like cockroaches.
"H-how do you keep him so well fed?!" Mitsuki asked, unable to figure out how Mikai could raise such a ravenous boy.
"Hero work pays well, after all, though we figured he usually needs to have about five meals' worth of food," Gohan answered. "He outright demanded we handed him meat on the bone when he was a baby, after all!"
"N-noted for the future, Mr. Son..." Masaru said, as he started to get up after falling down.
"Oi, don't go eating us out of our house, too!" Katsuki had to just crack a joke. However, saying that made him wish he could just collapse into himself, it was horrible!
"I mean, it's your mom's fault for making such a delicious dinner!"
"Alright, my handsome, young garbage disposal, you," Mitsuki can't help but laugh at the entire affair as she got back up. "You're a pretty funny kid. And I'm glad we got to meet you at last!"
"I'm not, but that's just because we see each other at school." Katsuki shot, since he's familiar with the monkey-tailed teen.
"Well, at least the sentiment is still there."
"Actually, before we leave, I have something here I'd like to give you, Katsuki!" Goku pulls out an invite.
"Hmm? What's this about?" Katsuki looked at the invite, a little bewildered at the envelope. However, the Bakugou Parents were positively shocked, because they recognize the insignia on the envelope as belonging to I-Island: the entire world's premiere artificial island and laboratory, with a Support R&D Department that would put even the major corporations' numerous Support Departments to shame.
"Well, the I-Island Expo handed me a second invite, they said it was for a 'Plus One?'"
"Hmph, I thought you would've given it to your girlfriend, or at the very least Deku."
"I did try to give mine to her, but she said that her father had already gotten her an invite, even managed to get two more for her friends! As for Izuku, from what I've heard, someone else had extended an invitation to him. So, naturally, you were my choice!"
"Hmph... figures. Since we're family, I'll accept your offer, just this once. However, no one at school is to know about this unless you want to die. Understand?"
"Wait, my nephew Goku got himself a girlfriend? This early?" Mitsuki was curious, having heard her Katsuki mention the word "girlfriend."
"Oh! She's one of his classmates, Momo Yaoyorozu!" Mikai started her gossip.
"No way! He's dating a Yaoyorozu?! How in the Hell did he pull that off?!" Mitsuki was completely floored.
"Trust me, I don't have an idea why, but it all just worked out...!"
The husbands, in the meanwhile, have their own conversation.
"You know, for as loose-lipped some of the UA students and a handful of staff are, I'm surprised that it isn't making as much waves," Masaru commented.
"I still think it's a bit early, personally, but there's not much I can do to stop it now," Gohan added on.
"Trust me, Uncle Gohan, it's pretty much an open secret," Katsuki had to butt in. "It's still annoying to hear everyone gush over them, especially Raccoon Eyes."
"Heh, if something catches the eye of the Principal, it's not going to be a secret for long, Katsuki. It'd take a government mandated non-disclosure agreement to not have him just introduce it as a rumor for his own amusement!"
"...I'm not sure if you're screwing with me or not, Uncle."
"He's always been a shrewd mammal, nephew. If you show even one twitch to him, he'll know exactly what you're thinking. I've never had him as a Principal, but I've had some old buddies of mine tell me about how their younger brothers had been put through Nezu's wringer."
In the meanwhile, Toshinori Yagi and Izuku Midoriya looked over the watery horizon at Takobah Beach. Ever since the beach was cleaned, there were more people going to the area, especially as the weather warmed up and the summer season was just barely there. However, for the two, it was their unofficial meeting spot, choosing a spot further away from the crowds.
"Young Midoriya... I cannot begin to express how proud I am with how much progress you've made with One for All," Toshinori stated with a warm smile. "I had thought that you would have more trouble with it, considering the Entrance Exam."
"Though I know that there's so much more I could do to improve myself," Izuku said, with a small frown. "And yet, it feels like I'm so far away from getting full control over it. Especially to the likes of Son's finesse over his own Quirk."
"I will admit, Young Son had exceeded even my expectations. However, I still felt like I had made the right decision choosing you as my successor. You have earned the right to One For All, and do not let anyone else say otherwise."
"Huh? What if Son wanted it more than me? If he had One For All, in addition to his own Quirk, he would be pretty much invincible!"
"Oh, lad... There's a much different mindset that your friend subscribes to when it comes to himself. It took me a while, but over the course of this term, I had noticed that he has a heightened sense of pride, especially when it comes to self-improvement. With those kinds of people, they pride themselves over improving in their own way, and they will look at any perceived 'shortcuts' as cheating." After All Might said his piece, to which Izuku was in thought.
"Do you think Son would see me having One For All as cheating?"
"Absolutely not, Young Midoriya! Even if you were to tell him the entire truth about One For All, he would say you've earned it! Not only rescuing Young Uraraka alongside him from that Zero Point robot, not only for rescuing Young Iida and Native from the Hero Killer, but from what you have in here." His scrawny hand then lightly knocks on Izuku's chest, where his heart is located. "You have the heart and soul of a true Hero. Son had seen it first hand, has he not?"
"I suppose so..." The green-haired teen laid down upon the pristine beach sand, looking as the sea turtles returned to the beach after it had been a disgusting waste yard for the better part of a decade.
"Though the truth of why I had invited you was that I wanted to tell you a story of a time where I was a Pro Hero working in the United States."
Toshinori was recalling his earliest memories as a Pro Hero.
"It was not long after my master, Nana Shimura, had fought All For One to the very end..."
"All For One..." Midoriya said in a soft sotto. "There wasn't much about the man that I had searched up, but from what I had found, he sounds like a terrifying Villain."
"The lack of information is for a very good reason, my boy. He was a horrible man, one who had once ruled Japan from under the shadows..."
Toshinori sheds a single tear, as the last time he had seen Nana before her demise was when she was holding the line against the megalomaniac, while Torino was fleeing with an unwilling Toshinori in tow. He had seen her impaled with the tendrils of All For One piercing directly through her torso, as the Villain lapped in his victory against the One For All holder.
"In order to prevent him from trying to get me, Torino had arranged for me to leave for the US, far away from his grip. It was there that I had my start as a Pro Hero."
California, USA. Approx. 40 years ago, 2109
"It was a calm day in Los Angeles... Well, as calm as you can get in such a restless city. However, suddenly, there was a robbery going on in the Casino district!"
An explosion pierces the bank from the inside out, startling the crowd that was in there. Emerging was a giant, monstrous villain, the man riding him was the ringleader.
"Hahaha! Excellent job, my brother! This ten million dollar job is the easiest job we'll ever have to do!" Gloated the red-costumed villain. The blue monster villain grunts as he continues to run.
"Those thugs... I can still remember them well as I had forty years ago! However, their crimes had not gone unnoticed."
At the intersection, a whole squadron of Police block off the road, and train their guns to the Villains, when two Heroes jump in. One was an electric Hero, the other a cow Heroine.
"Stop right there, Villains!" yelled Elecplant, as he shoots electricity at the Villains, disorienting the beastly Villain.
"I'll take them right here and now!" announced Cow Lady, turning into a bovine, charging right into the Villain, knocking him back.
"Heheh... Not bad, Heroes, but your luck has run out!" the red Villain unleashes rockets right out of his fingertips. A couple knocks Cow Lady back, and a couple more sent the cops scrambling away from the explosive payload. However, one rocket went further, approaching a green car, which held a petrified family!
"That was the last mistake those crooks have made, mark my words..."
However, a muscular man had entered the fray, deflecting the stray rocket, it exploding far away.
"FOR I AM HERE!" Chanted All Might. Unlike the All Might telling the story to his protégé, this All Might had a youthful look, alongside brilliant blue eyes with white sclerae.
"What the-?! Who the Hell are you?" exclaimed the red villain.
"I am just a wandering Hero from Japan. However, your grievous disregard for the populace ends here!"
"I am not done yet! Eat this!" the Red Villain spews an additional salvo of missiles at the foreigner, but it did nothing as he easily drove them off course.
"Now, now! There's enough food you can eat, just head into the local police station and you'll be well fed!" Toshinori chuckled in victory.
But it did allow them a chance to slip away due to the smokescreen.
"That is usually why you give your monologues after you saved the day, Young Midoriya. It's less likely for them to bail. Though all hope was not lost that day, as I had made an exceptionally good friend before I went to L.A!"
Soon, a red vehicle enters the fray, as a youthful adult with light brown hair and a stubble was piloting it.
"Going in just on instinct as usual, Toshi," David said, smirking as he shakes his head. "I'm tracking them as we speak. Hop in, big guy!"
"My apologies, Dave!" The young Toshinori apologized as he hopped in, and off they went.
"It had been such a long time, but I think I still have that letter from that family I had saved."
"Was it your first piece of fanmail?" Izuku asked.
"It was indeed my first one! After all this time, I wonder how she's doing. Where did I leave off on...? Oh, right!"
The blue Villain was hopping away, while the red Villain was whacking his brain over the mysterious foreigner.
"Just who in the Hell was that Japanese man?! He barely broke a sweat when he swatted my missiles away!" The Red Villain was getting more nervous, only hearing the grunts of his partner.
"You're right. If we can lose him, we'll be able to hide away from the other Pros!"
However, the vehicle spots them.
"You know we're gonna be late for our lecture, right?"
"What, and let these miscreants go free, Dave?" All Might grinned.
"Their vehicle might be able to chase us, but I'd like to see how they eat missiles!" Red fired away, before their pursuer simply fired missiles of their own, breaking into bubbles as their enemy's projectiles were captured and harmlessly exploded.
"Alright, big guy, you made your point. Let's stop these guys right here!"
"Aye aye, Dave!"
All Might got out of the car with a tremendous leap high into the sky.
"This guy's crazy!" Red incredulously said, before he fired his missiles at the figure. However, the only result his missiles got were that his clothes were singed off, showing a Hero Suit.
"I'm always prepared, Villain! That includes a prison cell for you and your partner of crime!" Toshinori stated, as he falls rapidly at the two Villains. "Take this! California SMASH!"
Bam! The punch directly hits the Blue Villain, causing the pair to fall unconscious as their ill-gotten gains fly in numerous directions as a gust of wind.
"Jeez, what is THAT guy packing?! He just wiped those two out like they were flies!" Cow Lady spoke, as she finally caught up to the scene, alongside a squadron of LA Police.
"I dunno, Cow Lady. I'm personally glad that he's on our side," Elecphant concluded, his partner nodding in return. "Though only if he hadn't just blown away the cash..."
The vehicle stops as All Might leaps down next to the car, as light as a feather.
"Alright, Toshi, you had your fun. Let the Pros handle it from here on," David said with a smirk.
"Oh, alright. I guess I was enjoying myself a bit there," All Might replied as he got into the vehicle, driving away... before not too far off, the red car turned into a red helicopter.
"...I hope ol' David has been behaving himself since I last left for Japan!" Toshinori said, with a satisfied smile on his face.
"Hmm, David? As in David Shield, Head Scientist and Developer of I-Island?!" Izuku asked.
"The very same man, my boy. He had been such a good man, even after we had separated and I returned to Japan. The last time I had actually seen him was about four years ago."
"I still watch that video, of you rescuing those people from a flaming skyscraper. It had given me strength during my childhood!"
"That old clip, nearly ten years ago? That was one of the most stressful nights I have had that wasn't related to that man... So many people had smoke in their lungs, a few were burnt very badly, and there was a few unconscious. It's a true miracle that no one had died."
"O-Oh no! I'm sorry I brought it up!"
"It's fine, Young Midoriya. I'm touched that even that stressful night had inspired you to go beyond. Just remember that no society can stand by itself if there's only one pillar holding it up. And no matter how studious you are, you will not be able to save everybody."
"That doesn't mean I won't stop trying to save everyone." Izuku challenged, with a grin breaking out on Toshinori's face.
"You'll go far in Heroics, I just know it. Though you still got a long way to go, you'll get there eventually!"
Fast forwarding to Saturday, this morning was the last day before the I-Expo was going to happen, and by happenstance, it was the last day of school. However, the effects of this year had shaken Shota Aizawa just as much, as he reminisces about the past in the perfectly empty Teacher's Lounge, about when he was a UA student.
He has always been aloof. For the most part, it was because his Quirk was not as flashy as something like All Might's or Endeavor's. Nonetheless, he had made numerous friends during his tenure at UA. He knows Hizashi Yamada, Present Mic, too much as the loud-mouthed idiot, and their senpai Nerumi Kayama, Midnight, whose Hero Costume was so infamous that the Japanese government had passed a law that regulated exposed skin for Hero Costumes. However, one person in that quad group had always stood out to him, but for the most painful of reasons. That being Oboro Shirakumo, otherwise known as Loud Cloud, his late best friend. He was a carefree man, kind-hearted, and one of the very few that had been able to touch even his aloof heart. And he was one of the few that had truly believed in his friends' ability to become a Hero. However, a year later during their Internships, Oboro died saving a group of students and a teacher from a collapsing building. That event had sent Shota spiraling into a depression. That was why he became such a jaded man, with barely any room for mistakes, lest it would take his life, or worse yet, take one of his students' lives.
That was what made Son Goku such an enigma to Eraserhead. He knew from the onset of the Entrance Exam, that the boy will be intriguing. From the way he carries himself against the Villain Bots, his comments towards those around him, and his quick adaptation to unforeseen plans, that kid was well-adjusted to the dangers of Heroism, especially when he finally figured out just who Kid Kong was. During the Replay of the Battle Trials, the way Son had chosen his Hero Costume had reminded him eerily similarly about his late best friend, his carefree attitude not letting him get distracted as he took out Uraraka, before drawing out his fight against Midoriya to see how far he had gone. To make matters weirder, the crown that Mei had fashioned for his student looked a lot like Oboro's crown. It all almost came crashing down when he saw him getting pounded into the wall by the Nomu, with bits of his blood coating the rocks. It was too much like how Oboro died, but instead of a building, it was an abomination crashing down onto him. While he may see Toshinori as a meathead, he will not ignore that he was why Son continues to walk among them. From that point on, Shota started to keep as much of an eye on Son as he can get away with, especially when the giant ape-like skeleton in his monkey-tailed student's closet showcased itself on the internet. Though thanks to the Hero Commission's misdirection and with how blurry those photos are, more people assumed it was just another Nomu than assuming it was his kid transforming into that thing.
To an extent, it felt like Son was a shade of Oboro remade into a new living being. However, when he went into his student's file, he was born a year too early. Regardless, it felt like it was the universe simultaneously playing the worst practical joke and giving him the best second chance rolled into one package.
"Shota, how's it going?" Hizashi came in, derailing his friend's train of thought. "What 'chu thinking about?"
"None of your business, Mic," Shota said in a harsh tone, before he sighed. "Alright, I was thinking about Oboro..."
"You know we can't go back in time and prevent that from happening. Trust me, I'd do it myself if I had the power!"
"It wasn't exactly that, Hizashi... I meant more because of how Son Goku had been handling himself."
"...Oh. Actually, I was kind of thinking the same thing. That monkey-tailed kid's like an uncanny reflection to him!"
"Tell me about it. Carefree, kind to a fault, uplifting those around him, even their hero names reference the skies in some capacity. If it wasn't for the fact he fights with energy attacks instead of a quarterstaff and his love for fighting, I would say he's pretty much just Oboro reincarnated into a kid body."
"I get you, Shota. But reincarnation or not, we shouldn't let the past dictate the future of these kids! They're gonna be around long after we retire from the Pro Hero industry!"
"Though letting them be taught the realities of the Hero Work World early will allow them to not make the same mistakes we did."
"On that we're on the same page. Still, they're teenagers. Should we be so drab that they can't enjoy the world when they leave our school?"
"If these Villains keep on attacking us, I don't have a choice in that matter."
"Fair point, Shota. Though I'm still gonna give them some fun before they're sent out!"
"Hmph, agree to disagree as usual. I'll see you later, Mic. I need to be there early, because the Principal thinks it necessary to release my class early for I-Expo."
The two teachers left, with Shota heading towards the Gymnasium's open concept pool, and Hizashi going the other way. In hindsight, he should have stayed near the gym, but he also needed time alone to reflect on everything that had happened. To be fair to himself, Minoru aside, the other eighteen kids, give or take a couple, were well-behaved enough that he would trust them to not kill one another on accident while he was gone. As he neared the door, he heard a countdown going on in the pool. With a slight grin, he opened the door and immediately glared at the nearest student. That being Shoto, as he slid off his Ice right into the pool, as everyone else looked at Aizawa with his Erasure activated. Katsuki glared with his eyes above the water like a crocodile, Izuku looking petrified, and Goku levitating above the water with a white aura surrounding him, slowly disappearing as he slowly sunk into the water.
"Your time in the pool has run out. Get dressed and return to the classroom," Aizawa instructed the class, as he deactivated Erasure and went straight to his classroom. As soon as he's out of eyeshot, everyone started to leave the pool area, though not without sulking about the misfortunes of the grand finals being cut short, mostly from the boys.
A few minutes later, all nineteen students were assembled in the classroom.
"As much as I'd rather not let the upcoming I-Island Expo get in the way of the final day of this term, the Principal had insisted that those with an early-day ticket be let go right at this moment. Son, you're at the top of the list, as they wanted you for your performance in the Sports Festival. As for Bakugo, he's sponsored by Son, so he may leave alongside him."
The rest of the student body were shocked and a few confused, as the first to go were Goku and Katsuki. Mostly because it was the ashened bomber boy that was allowed to go alongside the monkey-tailed teen.
"Next up is Midoriya, sponsored by All Might, of course," Aizawa rolled his eyes as he read out the reasoning, as Midoriya bowed in thanks and made his way to his teacher. Though the teacher could have sworn he saw a few beads of sweat drip off the green-haired teen's head, like he had revealed the world's biggest secret. "After that, Todoroki, as a representative of Endeavor." Shoto left, with a look of unenthusiastic boredom being plain on his face. "Finally, since they had a major I-Island benefactor to fund their tickets, Yaoyorozu, Jiro, and Uraraka may leave."
Kyoka was surprised, but that was not nearly as surprised as Ochako, who had looked like she was close to fainting from the surprise announcement, because it still felt like a weird dream they had. In the meanwhile, Momo stood up with a small smile on her face, getting the two up as they took their leave. Mina pouted while Asui looked neutral at the three, with Toru's emotions being unreadable due to her complete invisibility, though she was sour since she, alongside the other two, lost an intense game of Janken two days ago. The rest of the kids were stuck in their seats as the had seen the seven leave.
"Hey, what about the rest of us?!" Minoru incredulously asked.
"I am only letting them go because they have to leave within thirty minutes. I have the liberty to still hold you for the rest of this period," His teacher replied, which had saddened a few of his classmates, though it didn't explode into protests because of their teacher's authority. "Regardless, today will be the last time you'll see me until the training camp. I would suggest you to gather supplies, as we will be going out somewhere remote, so that the chance of a Villain attack will be minimized."
Thus, began the travel for the seven early released. With their Hero Costumes on, they had made their way onto their planes. All Might's private jet and the Yaoyorozu Jet were the first to fly off, with a third jet holding the Sports Festival kids flying off soon after. All three are heading off towards I-Island, the first one to make it was All Might's jet.
During the flight, Goku had started to meditate. Everything went so fast, and yet in that span of three months, he had grown magnitudes stronger than he had over the vast majority of his entire life. These Quirks and his classmates are truly wonderful! Soon, he and the Great Ape had appeared once more within their subconsciousness.
"Ah, long time no talk, Kakarot..." The ape spoke out first. "Thank you for the fresh air."
"Hnng..." Goku was irritated at this comment. "Look, that was not intentional... But since you helped me from being nabbed by that Nomu, I should give you my thanks."
"That abomination was nothing. Compared to that beak-faced freak, it was insultingly weak, and if it were not for that dragon, I would have plucked every limb from that thing..."
"Oozaru..." The humanoid half was going to lecture, but then the ape stopped him.
"Kakarot, you're forgetting what the dragon had told you, that thing was a zombified husk, anyways. It's not like you were killing those Earthlings, you were destroying what was supposed to be dead already. Whatever is creating those things is upsetting the balance of creation and destruction."
"You mean like those League of Villain goons?" Goku asked, the Ape thought about it.
"Maybe... I suspect that whoever is controlling that scrawny destroyer is the true kingpin of that group. Because he is too weak-willed to have as much of a pull on those cannon fodder you had faced in the USJ."
"And what is this about 'balancing creation and destruction' thing?" The humanoid half asked, causing the ape to growl in annoyance.
"It's always been said 'Before creation, comes destruction'. If there's an over-saturation of evil, it must be destroyed, so that what comes from its ashes will become stronger and better than what had come before. Volcanoes are capable of wiping entire cities off the face of the Earth, but the soils it grants to humans are more fertile than what had come before. When fires turn everything in a forest to a charred black, life comes back, more vibrant and numerous than before."
"Wow... I hadn't thought of it like that..." Goku mused to himself.
"Exactly. However, this balance is being upset by something... If that bird-faced zombie and winged thing is of any indication. I think you're thinking in the correct direction, but for the sake of our survival, I will give you the ability to tap into my full might. Even if they play it smart and remove your tail beforehand, they will not be able to stop you, Kakarot."
"Mmm... There's nothing I can do to have you stop, isn't there?"
"No. It's your birthright. There is no shame in using it, and that goes double if they manage to capture you."
"Alright... However, I will be in control from here on out. And that means you do not kill when you're out, okay?"
After the ape scowled at this conditional merging, it relents and nods its head.
"I can live with those conditions. Prepare yourself."
The ape roars loudly, as a golden aura surrounds it, and soon, the two fuse into one, leaving behind only Goku. With a brilliant golden aura and bright yellow irises, Goku is finally, truly alone.
"Remember, Kakarot. Before creation comes destruction... Your father would be proud of you if he were here." The ape's voice rumbled in the void.
"Wait, my father? Like Gohan?"
"You will know in due time. Farewell for now..."
"Son-san." an outside voice called out. "Son..."
"OI, MONKEY, WAKE UP!" Katsuki shouted, startling Goku awake.
"Wah! Something wrong?" His eyes darted around, as they focused on Katsuki and Shoto.
"We've just landed, Son-san," Shoto said. "And I thought you were napping."
"Sorry, guys... I zone out easily when I'm meditating," Goku replied, sheepishly chuckling as he got up. The three made their way off the public jet, as they get to set their eyes in I-Island.
AN: These chapters could be reasonably said as semi-canon, or a canon if you want to lump it into the story of MHA. My personalized canon is that the I-Island Expo takes place right at the end of the Spring Term. While there's no real explanation as to how the kids of UA went to the Island, I'm coming with the explanation that the Invitees are excused early, then the Volunteer Workers are called in next, finally the rest are allowed to go in. Sadly, Class 1-B is sidelined in this move and this fanfiction because I don't really have too many major moments for them, though I'd imagine they would be allowed to go around the same time the rest of 1A are released.
As for Real Life Grievances because all of you love that, it's mostly cold as balls with a lot of snow and I want to do more projects. I promise that the proper Manga Chapters will come out soon enough, I just need a satisfying (for me) way to go into the Forest Arc, and I do have the Kashyyyk Mall Chapter written. Now, whether that'd be going ahead and having Goku and Momo be nabbed (the former most likely by either Gigantomachia or Mr. Compress, and the latter absolutely likely by Compress) by the League during the Forest Arc or save the encounter for the Winter Break and have it go that way depends on the mood I have when I get there.